This invention relates to ice fishing tip ups. A typical such tip up is placed over a hole cut in the ice of e.g. a lake or river, and holds a spool of line. The spool of line typically terminates at a baited hook, the hook being lowered into the water in preparation for hooking and retrieving a fish which takes the bait.
In a conventional tip up, when a fish takes the bait, and thus pulls on the line, the pull on the line activates free rotation of the spool in response to the pull on the line. Namely, the fish freely swims away with the bait and/or hook, and may or may not become hooked. Such rotation of the spool, typically operates to activate a signal device on the tip up. The activation of the signal device indicates to the fisherman that a fish has moved the bait. The fisherman moves to the tip up, and hopefully pulls in the fish.
However, by the time the fisherman gets to the tip up in response to activation of the signal device, the fish may have spit out the bait, or taken the bait off the hook and spit out the hook. One reason such failure to hook the fish occurs is because no resistance is quickly applied to the fishing line in response to the fish""s strike, sufficient to set the hook in the mouth of the fish. Thus, since there is no pull by the fisherman shortly after the fish takes the bait, the fish is not hooked, the strike is wasted, and the fish gets away. Good for the fish. Not good for the one who is trying to catch fish.
By contrast, in conventional sport fishing, where the fisherman holds the rod or line in his hand, the fisherman responds to a strike, or other movement of bait by the fish, by promptly pulling or jerking the line upwardly to set the hook. This action hopefully firmly embeds the point of the hook, and thus the hook, in the mouth of the fish before the fish can spit out the hook.
In conventional ice fishing, tip ups which provide automated resistance or jerk response to a strike are known, and are accompanied by limited success in actually retrieving hooked fish. Some such tip ups severely restrict or stop pay out of line after the fish strikes, whereby the resistance applied may be limited to the resistance to payout of line, and whereby the fish may not be hooked, or a sufficiently large fish can break the line. Other such tip ups can pay out a substantial amount of fish line before applying the resistance or jerk, thus giving the fish time to get the bait off the hook and/or to feel the hook, and to spit out the hook before the resistance or jerk is activated. While such conventional tip up designs are known in the art, such designs are believed to have experienced little, if any success in the commercial marketplace because of their limited effectiveness in hooking fish.
It is an object of this invention to provide an ice fishing tip up which responds promptly to a fish biting the hook, with an aggressive jerk on the hook to set the hook in the fish""s mouth, and which thereafter provides generally unrestricted payout of such fishing line as is carried on the spool.
This invention comprehends ice fishing tip ups which are generally comprised of a support structure, a collar, a shaft, a spring, a stop, a spool and a signal device. The support structure supports the tip up on a surface of ice through which a user wishes to fish. The collar is mounted to the support structure for extension along a first axis transverse to the support structure and toward a hole in the ice. The shaft is mounted in the tip up along a second axis which generally coincides with the first axis. The shaft is mounted for rotation with respect to the collar and is movable generally along the second axis relative to the collar between a released position and one of a plurality of longitudinally distinct set positions. The spring biases the shaft against movement of the shaft with respect to the collar toward a respective one of the set positions, thus to jerk the shaft upwardly relative to the collar. The stop, on one of the collar and the shaft, is mounted for temporarily coupling the shaft and the collar together when the shaft is moved to the set position against biasing force of the spring. The spool is adapted to carry fishing line and corresponding hook on the fishing line, the spool being mounted for rotation about a third axis concurrent with rotation of the shaft about the second axis. The signal device is activated when a fish pulls on the hook.
In some embodiments, the spool is mounted for free-spool rotation about the third axis concurrent with rotation of the shaft about the second axis.
In preferred embodiments, the spool is free to rotate without active restraint, and thus to pay out fishing line, after the spring jerks the shaft upwardly.
In preferred embodiments, the ice fishing tip up comprises a slot extending longitudinally of the collar, and a plurality of notches extending transversely from the direction of extension of the slot. The stop comprises a stud compatible with traverse of the stud along the slot when the shaft is moved to the set position against the biasing force of the spring, and with traverse into a selected one of the notches, whereby the spring biases the stud against the collar at an edge of the respective slot.
In preferred embodiments, the collar has a top edge, the slot extending downwardly from the top edge of the collar, the tip up being effectively set for hooking fish by turning the shaft, as necessary, about the second axis to bring the stud into alignment with the slot, pushing the shaft downwardly with respect to the collar and against biasing resistance force of the spring, whereby the stud progresses downwardly in the slot, turning the shaft with respect to the second axis and thereby engaging the stud in a selected notch, and releasing downward force on the shaft whereby the stud engages the collar at an engagement edge of the collar at the respective notch.
In preferred embodiments, the stop accommodates uncoupling of the shaft and the collar when a fish pulls on the hook, resulting in the shaft, and thus the hook, being jerked upwardly by the biasing force of the spring, the spool being free to rotate without active restraint, and thus to pay out line, after the spring jerks the shaft upwardly.
In some embodiments, release of the stud from engagement with the collar comprises frictional sliding of the stud against the collar at the respective engagement edge of the collar at the respective notch, whereby magnitude of the upward jerk and the magnitude of the sliding force both strongly correlate with the relative position of the respective notch along the length of the slot.
In other embodiments, release of the stud from engagement with the collar comprises rolling engagement of the stud against the collar at the respective engagement edge of the respective collar at the respective notch, whereby magnitude of force required to effect release of the stud from the respective notch is generally independent of the relative position of the notch along the length of the slot, while magnitude of the upward jerk strongly correlates to the relative position of the notch along the length of the slot.
In typical embodiments, the spool is restrained against rotating and thus paying out line concurrent with the spring jerking the shaft upwardly. Also in typical embodiments, the spool can rotate about the third axis a limited distance before the spring jerks the shaft upwardly, the spool is generally restrained from rotation while the spring is jerking the shaft upwardly, and the spool can freely rotate and pay out line after the spring jerks the shaft upwardly.
The stop can be mounted on one of the collar and the shaft and can extend toward the other of the collar and the shaft, the other of the collar and the shaft comprising a slot extending longitudinally of the respective collar or shaft, and a plurality of notches extending transversely from the direction of extension of the slot. Such stop is compatible with traverse of the stop along the slot when the shaft is moved from the released position to a respective one of the set positions against the biasing force of the spring, and with traverse of the stop into a selected one of the notches, whereby the spring biases the stop against the collar at an engagement edge of the collar at the respective notch. In such embodiments, release of the stop from engagement with the collar, and corresponding uncoupling of the shaft and the collar from each other when a fish pulls on the hook, results in the spring exerting an upward jerk on the shaft, and a corresponding upward jerk on the hook. Such release of the stop from engagement with the collar can comprise the recited rolling engagement of the stop against the respective edge of the collar at the respective notch, whereby magnitude of force required to effect release of the stop from the respective notch is generally independent of which of the notches along the length of the slot is selected for the set position of the stop.
In the alternative, such release of the stop from engagement with the collar can comprise the recited frictional sliding engagement of the stop against the respective edge of the collar at the respective notch, whereby magnitude of force required to effect release of the stud from the respective notch, and magnitude of the upward jerk, are both related to the relative position of the respective notch along the length of the slot.
In some embodiments, the spool is mounted to the shaft and rotates about a third axis of rotation independent of rotation of the shaft.
In some embodiments, the spool can rotate about the third axis a limited distance before the spring jerks the shaft upwardly; the spool is generally restrained from rotation while the spring is jerking the shaft upwardly; and the spool can freely rotate after the spring jerks the shaft upwardly.
In some embodiments, the engagement edge of the collar at a respective notch defines an angle xcex1 of about 2 degrees to about 25 degrees, preferably about 2 degrees to about 10 degrees, with respect to a perpendicular measured from a line parallel to the first axis, whereby the biasing force of the spring urges the stud away from the slot and into enhanced engagement with the collar at a distal end of the notch.